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"That disembarkment ruined everything I've been doing for the last two months. The whole thing flew out the window, it's been so difficult these past two months.

"Every rule has been broken in this five minutes of disembarking the plane. That one process could restart the whole thing."

An Air New Zealand spokesman said it appears the disembarkation process on this particular flight did not take place in accordance with the airline's new process and will be looking into the incident.

He said the airline has amended its boarding and disembarkation procedures to introduce social distancing during these stages of the journey, saying "we appreciate the support and patience of our passengers as this does take a little time and requires their cooperation".

"Air New Zealand is following Ministry of Health and WHO guidance to ensure flights are safe for crew and our customers. This includes supporting physical distancing onboard by allocating seating where we can to allow for extra space between passengers.

"Blocks are currently in place for the middle seats on our domestic jets and aisle seats on turboprop services. We're allowing groups of people or families travelling together to be seated together, but if they wish to be seated separately, we will provide for this," he said.